''Rambling Boy'' is an album by bassist Charlie Haden. It was recorded in January and April 2008 at various locations, and was released later that year by

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

and

Emarcy EmArcy Records is a jazz record label founded in 1954 by the American Mercury Records. The name is a phonetic spelling of "MRC", the initials for Mercury Record Company. During the 1950s and 1960s, musicians such as Max Roach, Clifford Brown ...

Records. On the album, Haden is joined by his "Family & Friends," including members of his immediate family plus guest musicians. Although Haden is best known for his involvement in jazz, he began his musical career at age 2 as part of the Haden Family Band, playing the role of a yodeling cowboy. ''Rambling Boy'' came about when, at a gathering to celebrate his mother's 80th birthday, Haden's wife

Ruth Cameron Ruth Cameron is an American record producer and jazz vocalist. Biography Cameron came from a musical family, but first acted in theaters in North America and Europe. After marrying bassist Charlie Haden, she was his manager and co-produced many ...

suggested that the family sing " You Are My Sunshine". The event revived an idea for a recording that had been in the back of Haden's mind for years. The album, which includes songs made famous by the Carter Family and

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

as well as original and traditional pieces, features appearances by Haden's wife and children, as well as over a dozen guest musicians. The album was followed by a 2009 documentary film titled ''Rambling Boy'', written and directed by Reto Caduff.

Reception

The track titled "Is This America? (Katrina 2005)" was nominated for " Best Country Instrumental Performance" at the

51st Annual Grammy Awards The 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 8, 2009, honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the b ...

. In a review for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, Thom Jurek wrote: "Saying that... ''Rambling Boy'' is a personal album is an understatement... Despite the wide range of players here, this album can only be called Americana in the strictest sense of the term as its selections are new readings of mostly traditional folk and country songs." ''

DownBeat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' awarded the album a full 5 stars, and Paul de Barros stated: "Hearing Haden play this music today... is a revelation. It is not only a homecoming, but a brave illumination of the source of the soulfulness rnetteColeman would hear in him so many years later." John Kelman of '' All About Jazz'' noted that the album "is proof of the inestimable value of music and kin, joined together to create the kind of close bond that sadly no longer exists for so many," and commented: "An unexpected but moving addition to Haden's discography, ''Rambling Boy'' may be the bassist's most deeply personal album to date." Writing for ''

Jazz Times ''JazzTimes'' is an American magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C. in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade of growth ...

'', Michael J. West called the album "gorgeous," and remarked: "''Rambling Boy'' may be an anomaly in aden'scatalogue, but it's a marvelous one."

Track listing

# "

Single Girl, Married Girl Single Girl, Married Girl is a folk song made famous by The Carter Family, about the differences in lifestyle between the two title characters. The song was originally released on Victor Records in 1928 as the a-side of Victor 20937, the Carter Fami ...

" (

A. P. Carter Alvin Pleasant Delaney Carter (December 15, 1891 – November 7, 1960) was an American musician and founding member of The Carter Family, one of the most notable acts in the history of country music. Biography Life A.P. Carter was born to Robe ...

) – 2:38 # "Rambling Boy" (Walter T. Adams) – 2:58 # "20/20 Vision" ( Joe Allison/

Milton Estes Milton Esco Estes (May 9, 1914 – August 23, 1963) was an American country music and Southern gospel singer and musician. Estes was a host and house performer at the Grand Ole Opry. Early life Milton Esco Estes was born on May 9, 1914, in A ...

) – 4:16 # "

Wildwood Flower "Wildwood Flower" (or "The Wildwood Flower") is an American song, best known through performances and recordings by the Carter Family. It is a folk song, cataloged as Roud Folk Song Index No. 757. History "Wildwood Flower" is a variant of the ...

" (A. P. Carter) – 3:35 # "Spiritual" (

Josh Haden Josh Haden (born 1968 in New York City) is an American musician and singer. He is the founder, bassist and singer of the group Spain. Haden is the son of the late Charlie Haden. Career Haden is the founder, bassist and singer of the group Spai ...

) – 6:14 # "Oh, Take Me Back" (A. P. Carter) – 2:19 # " You Win Again" (

) – 3:12 # " The Fields of Athenry" (

Pete St John Peter Mooney (31 January 1932 – 12 March 2022), known professionally as Pete St John, was an Irish folk singer-songwriter. Born in Dublin, Ireland, he was best known for composing "The Fields of Athenry". Life and career St John was born in In ...

) – 7:29 # "Ocean Of Diamonds" (Clifford Carnahan) – 3:38 # "He's Gone Away" (Charlie Haden/Pat Metheny) – 4:32 # "A Voice From On High" (Bessie Mauldin/ Bill Monroe) – 4:16 # "

Down by the Salley Gardens "Down by the Salley Gardens" (''Irish: Gort na Saileán'') is a poem by William Butler Yeats published in ''The Wanderings of Oisin and Other Poems'' in 1889. History Yeats indicated in a note that it was "an attempt to reconstruct an old song f ...

" (words by

W. B. Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

) – 4:30 # "Road of Broken Hearts" (Gervis Stanford) – 2:29 # "Is This America? (Katrina 2005)" (Pat Metheny) – 3:40 # "Tramp on the Street" (Grady Cole/Hazel M. Cole) – 4:57 # " Old Joe Clark" (Traditional) – 4:06 # "Seven Year Blues" (Eddie Hill/ Charlie Louvin/ Ira Louvin) – 2:41 # "Old Haden Family Show 1939" (Haden Family) – 1:43 # " Oh Shenandoah" (Traditional) – 3:49

Personnel

Musicians (family & friends) * Charlie Haden – bass, vocals *

Russ Barenberg Russ Barenberg (born October 8, 1950) is an American bluegrass musician. Biography Barenberg began playing guitar at age 13, taking lessons from Alan Miller, whose brother, John Miller, Barenberg would later play with. His style was heavily inf ...

– guitar, mandolin *

Jack Black Thomas Jacob Black (born August 28, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is known for his acting roles in the films '' High Fidelity'' (2000), ''Shallow Hal'' (2001), ''Orange County'' (2002), '' School of Rock'' (2003), ''E ...

– vocals *

Sam Bush Charles Samuel Bush (born April 13, 1952) is an American mandolinist who is considered an originator of progressive bluegrass music. In 2020, he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame as a member of New Grass Revival. ...

– mandolin *

– vocals * Rosanne Cash – vocals *

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...

– vocals *

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin "Jerry" Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. Career In addition to his fourteen solo recordings, Douglas has played on more than 1,600 albums. As a sideman, he has ...

– dobro *

Stuart Duncan Stuart Duncan (born April 14, 1964) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Life Duncan was born in Quantico, Virginia, and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band. He ...

– fiddle * Béla Fleck – banjo *

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist b ...

– vocals * Buddy Greene – harmonica *

– vocals * Petra Haden – vocals * Rachel Haden – vocals * Tanya Haden – vocals, cello * Bruce Hornsby – piano, vocals *

John Leventhal John Leventhal (born December 18, 1952) is a musician, producer, songwriter, and recording engineer who has produced albums for William Bell, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Michelle Branch, Rosanne Cash, Marc Cohn, Shawn Colvin, Sarah Jarosz, Rodne ...

– guitar *

Pat Metheny Patrick Bruce Metheny ( ; born August 12, 1954) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. He is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works, and other side projects. His style incorporates elements of progre ...

– guitar * Ricky Skaggs – guitar, mandolin, banjo, vocals * Bryan Sutton – guitar *

Dan Tyminski Daniel John Tyminski (born June 20, 1967) is an American bluegrass composer, vocalist, and instrumentalist. He is a member of Alison Krauss's band Union Station, and has released three solo albums, ''Carry Me Across the Mountain'' (2000), on ...

– vocals, mandolin * Buck White – piano Production * Charlie Haden – producer *

– producer * Craig Bishop – executive manager * Garrett Shelton – project manager * Rich Breen – engineer (mixing) * Steve Rod – engineer (mixing) * Tom Baker – engineer (mastering) * Bil VornDick – engineer * Mark Aarvold – engineer * Rick DeProfi – engineer * Lee Groitsch – second engineer * Morgan Hobbs – assistant engineer * Dean Berner – engineer (intern) * Craig Bishop – photography * Jim McGuire – photography * Latifa Metheny – photography

References

{{Reflist 2008 albums Charlie Haden albums Decca Records albums